Regions can get the right to issue permits for the collection of red mushrooms
The Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation proposed to transfer to the subjects the authority to issue permits for the collection and circulation of mushrooms listed in the regional Red Books
The Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation proposed to transfer to the subjects the authority to issue permits for the collection and circulation of mushrooms listed in the regional Red Books.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation wants to empower regional authorities to issue permits for the collection and circulation of rare plants and fungi. We are talking about species listed in the Red Books of subjects whose population is recovering. Decisions on mushrooms and plants from the Red Book of Russia will remain for the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation. The initiative with such amendments to the federal law "On Environmental Protection" is posted on the portal of draft regulatory legal acts, where it is being discussed.
The Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia is confident that local authorities have the most complete and up-to-date information on the state of rare species populations and are responsible for their preservation. Therefore, unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles for the regions in issuing permits for the collection of “Red Book” should be removed, and not act through a federal agency. In 2025 alone, the Ministry of Natural Resources issued more than 160 permits for the extraction and circulation of plants and fungi listed in the regional Red Books.
According to the First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Agrarian and Food Policy, Senator from Karelia Igor Zubarev, as many qualified experts as possible should take part in the public discussion of this initiative. In case of adoption of amendments to the federal law "On Environmental Protection", the regions will receive new powers from September 1, 2027.
“When it comes to the Red Book species, the main thing is not to harm. Residents of Karelia today often complain that in our forests there is an industrial harvest of berries and mushrooms. If people who earn on this, will be able to collect and rare species, the population of which began to recover, it threatens to destroy them. Therefore, such issues should be approached carefully. Perhaps, of the more than 70 species of mushrooms listed in the Red Book of Karelia, some no longer need special protection. But this must be decided by specialists, said Igor Zubarev.
